NFL Players Association Executive Director DeMaurice Smith, right, and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, at the witness table on Capitol Hill in Washington, during a House Judiciary Committee hearing on legal issues relating to football head injuries. AP Photo/Charles Dharapak

No 2011 NFL season?

No 2011 NBA season?

No problem for the MLB. Should there be no 2011 NFL or NBA seasons due to a lockout (I shudder at the thought), baseball could come out as the biggest winner.

“If they want to take two lessons from baseball, fans lose a lot when you don’t play and they kind of forget and it takes a long time to get back. Fortunately enough, we’ve been able to get back to that point,” said two-time World Series champion David Eckstein. “We’re up for a contract renegotiation also this year and it’s vital to make sure that we get that in play. If we can get that signed, I would see baseball going to the forefront once again and being the national pastime once again if those two sports decide to lockout and not play.”

You’ll recall the last baseball lockout came in 1994 and saw the cancellation of the World Series. Baseball critics say this move devastated the sport’s fan base during a critical time when the NFL and NBA’s popularity continued to spike.

I highly doubt the NFL will take a hit in the fan base, but the NBA, perhaps, is more vulnerable to a potential lockout.

“I would love for people to turn their attention to baseball if their current NBA or NFL fans,” said Washington Nationals hitting coach Rick Eckstein.

So what do you think sports fans? Would baseball’s fan base grow should the NBA and NFL lockout in 2011?

Comments

For better or worse I’ve yet to watch a MLB game since they tanked the World Series and that’s my choice. As a Magic season ticket holder I can assure the NBA I’ll also walk away from their over-paid-spoiled-brat owners and players just as easily. To answer the question: I’ll not switch to the MLB as a result of a NBA
or NFL lock-out in 2011.